Monday, July 15 • 3:15 PM - 4:30 PM CST
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Location: McCormick Place, IFT FIRST Theater (S100 Ballroom)
Description:
Join us for a discussion on the current scientific understanding of ultra-processed foods (UPFs). This session will provide background and an overview of recent advances in the characterization of UPFs, the impact of innovative ingredients and technologies on their quality and safety, expectations and perceptions of consumers, the influence of UPF consumption on nutrition and health, and building healthy dietary patterns with UPFs.
Assessments and estimations made by health institutions such as the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) 2009–2010 indicated that ultra-processed foods (UPFs) accounted for 57.9% of dietary energy and almost 90% of added sugars in diets of US adults. Today, ultra-processed foods make up 73% of the US food supply. Considerable literature associates the intake of UPFs with metabolic syndrome, cancer, and all-cause mortality; current research aims to clarify the identification of the underlying causes and mechanisms of such effects. Meanwhile, the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Scientific Advisory Committee is exploring the inclusion of UPFs in realistic, healthy dietary patterns. Innovation in ingredients/additives and technologies may contribute to minimizing the threats linked to the consumption of these foods and improve consumer acceptability and overall sensory quality of UPFs.
Speakers include top nutrition and metabolism researchers at the US Department of Agriculture and US National Institutes of Health as well as the guest editor and authors of research that will soon be published in the Journal of Food Science’s upcoming special issue on Ultra-Processed Foods.
